Learning to Jump
by Urbi et Orbi
Summary: Nothing out of the ordinary was ever suppose to happen to college bound Maggie Calcarol, but as she discovers she has the surreal ability to 'jump' she digs into the origins of her powers, entangling herself in a war with unlikely companions. Griffin X OC
1. The Jump

They all sat, feet bound down to their boards which laid like planks before them, starring at the vast snow covered landscape before their eyes, quietly minding to themselves before one, the auburn haired female balanced herself up, looking up at the two behind her. "Ready?"

"Ready as ever." The ash headed male, who was currently scrolling through his iPod, replied; balancing himself up on his board.

"Now remember-"

"-If something goes wrong, just-" He cut in.

"-yeah, yeah. Whatever. You guys, are we gonna just sit here and chat or go down this mountain anyways?" This time, the onyx orbed companion of the two got up, shoving her mp3 back into the back pocket of her pants, and fixed her beanie on as if it would make a difference.

Without even waiting for a reply, she flew down, gliding down the mountain with ease on her board as if she had been doing this since birth, the other two following suit.

Cool air shot down her spine, nipping at her collar, as the girl zigzagged into the bushel of pines, barely missing the set of needle trees to her left. She slightly turned her to watch out for her companions, sliding to a stop, listening to hear them. But her observation was only met by silence. Quiet peaceful silence.

Pushing back a bit at her collar, Maggie waited a bit longer, but once hearing the shuffling of snow, cleared out of the trees, going down further the mountain side and waited a bit longer. "Dominic." She called out, hands on her hips, as she pouted, starring at the pair sliding down slowly. "Ashlyn. Come on you guys! I can't wait all effing day!"

Dominic flicked her the middle finger, before taking hold of his iPod with both hands, scrolling through his play list; pressing the back edge of his BURTON board into the day old snow, allowing it to slide down with ease.

"If you would just wait for us Maggie! Then you wouldn't be waited for us every two seconds." Ashlyn, the petite brunette called, holding her arms out like a surfer, slightly turning her board straight to speed off over to the fuming dark cherry red head. Dominic, satisfied with the song he had chosen, turned his board as well, creating a straight flash in the mountain before spraying snow on the females in his sliding stop.

"Jerks, the both of you. Now seriously, can we board or are we just going to go down this mountain one step at a time?"

"Ok. Whatever. Just stay out of the trees. Nothing but icy snow there."

"Got it."

"Uh-huh." For an instance, Maggie could hear the humming of Dominic's iPod headphones and the song they were playing, and as if automatically, Maggie began to feed out the lyrics into the back of her mind.

_**Show me how to lie**_

_**You're getting better all the time**_

_**And turning all against the one**_

_**Is an art that's hard to teach**_

_**Another clever word**_

_**Sets off an unsuspecting herd**_

_**And as you get back into line**_

_**A mob jumps to their feet**_

She laughed lightly, watching Dominic begin to speed off, Ashlyn giggling as she joined him on their pursuit down the hill. "It was really only you..." Maggie began singing softly, taking in the landscape. Hills of white stretched for miles, only here and there around the top of the caps did trees grow, more so growing farther down towards the bottom going to the base.

It had been awhile since the group had made their annual trip to Kirchdorf, but this year, Maggie felt like conquering a better, bigger, more advanced mountain. She watched the sun barely make its way over the horizon, enjoying the fact that the masses of the people that usually dominated the mountain weren't morning children, allowing the other scare snowboarders and skiers a chance to ride down the mountain as it should be, not overflowing with inexperienced beginners and snobbish morons.

Maggie sighed, inhaling the fresh pine scent of the mountain before rushing down, allowing her board to turn straight and fly her down to the others. Instinctively, her body took half of the control of the board, allowing it only half a mind to direct her in her path to the bottom towards the chair lifts, zooming off, zigzagging, and jumping off of small hills rejecting from the side of the mountain. The dark red head was getting closer and closer to her companions, shifting some of her weight on to the front of board before the wind gush picked up, sending her beanie flying off. Her head did a double take, one moment watching her favorite MUSE beanie land in the snow, the next, barely catching glimpse of the trees her board had led her into. With sheer force, and the total withdraw of her weight directed now into falling back to the side, Maggie skidded down into another group of trees; her board skidding her in front of a pine.

Instinctively, her body jerk, closing her eyes and imagining the view of the mountain she had before this little incident occurred, the calm peaceful backdrop of clear, white snow covering the trees, she image it all.

_Back to the top. Back to the top!_

She shut her eyes, swiftly turning her board parallel to the snow, before bracing herself. Maggie gasped, feeling the as if the wind had been knocked out of her. Her head began to spin. Her arms lift up protectively above her face. A gasp escaped her lips as she braced herself for the impact. A millisecond Maggie saw the trees getting closer, then the next; she was viewing once again the mountain top. Bewildered, she slid down to where her beanie laid in the snow. She couldn't make sense of it. How did she do it? Every ounce of her composure rattled with a moment, a split second that took her from one place to the other. How...? Involuntarily, her hand made its way through her messy locks, brows furrowed together as she pointed from one spot to the other.

"Maggie, what's going on? You were just complaining how you were going to wait every two seconds for us to get down the mountain, and now..." Ashlyn, climbing back up to where the red head stood, dragging her board behind her with one foot still in the binding.

"Sorry." She laughed. "Just dropped my beanie." The lie slipped through her lips like sweet sugar. She wasn't even fully aware that she had replied at all,

"Oh. Well. Come on then." Ashlyn slipped back into her other binding and went back down to Dominic who was once again picking out another song from his play list.

_She didn't notice...she didn't see it?!_

_**Slowly out of line**_

_**And drifting closer in your sights**_

_**So play it out I'm wide awake**_

_**It's a scene about me**_

_**There's something in your way**_

_**And now someone is gonna pay**_

_**And if you can't get what you want**_

_**Well it's all because of me**_

_Had Dominic notice? Had they not seen her head into the trees?_

Maggie pushed off, straightening her board and sped off. Must've been a trick. Yeah...a trick.

_**And now you'll lead the way**_

_**Show the light of day**_

_**Nice work you did**_

_**You're gonna go far, kid**_

_**Trust, deceived!**_

_**With a thousand lies**_

_**And a good disguise**_

_**Hit 'em right between the eyes**_

_**Hit 'em right between the eyes**_

_**When you walk away**_

_**Nothing more to say**_

_**See the lightning in your eyes**_

_**See 'em running for their lives**_

She began laughing, readjusting the pair of gray shaded aviator sunglasses back onto the top of her head, smiling as she swayed her hands from side to side, dancing to the beat of the music.

The club was filled with people, from dancing on the dance floor to sitting at the bar drinking. Neon lights began flashing like strobe lights as a new song came on, hyping up the energy.

Maggie couldn't help but sing along, making sure at the same time her as-real-as-it-gets midnight black wig didn't expose her pulled back dark cherry locks. The group of people she was mingling with all began to jump, one or two of the girls joining Maggie as they began, drunk-like, singing with their fake air microphones. People pushed against her, making her pull down her shirt just a bit and fix her skirt, not really caring that her feet were hurting from the open toed heels she had quickly shoved on without a care before she left the house.

She was in L.A., in the City of Angels, and couldn't help but feel more alive. The night life seemed so surreal compared to that of sleepy Kailida scene.

_**Well hey, hey baby it's never too late**_

_**Pretty soon you won't remember a thing**_

_**And I'll be distant as stars reminiscing**_

_**Your hearts been wasted on me.**_

Paramore's Decoy poured out over the dancers from the speakers, booming as the DJ began putting his own twist on the song. The volume began to turn up, causing the crowded to get rowdier, louder; Maggie began to grin from ear to ear. This was perfect. Just too perfect. Any day, any time, any place she wanted to go, Maggie could go any where in the blink of an eye on a whim. It was a beautiful thing; a gift even! The way she couldn't get enough of her new found "hobby". From the morning in Kirchdorf to now, Maggie could go from place to place. Oh, what a beautiful thing it was. This gift of hers.

_**Living life inside a dream**_

_**Time is changing everything**_

_**Forgetting all the memories**_

_**And I'm forced into you just cause you're into me**_

_**Well hey, hey baby, it's never too late**_

_**When I'm gone you won't remember a thing**_

_**But I can't stay and you know I won't wait**_

_**I was gone from the very first day**_

Absent mindedly, she flipped out her cell, checking the time. It was only close to midnight here in the City of Angels but back home it was getting close to three in the morning. With a heavy sigh, she shoved the cell back into her pocket, breaking away from the group. Like this, the midnight night club scene compared to Cinderella's ball, she knew when the clock struck twelve it would all have to go back to the norm. And unfortunately, that meant that little Cinderella here would have to go back to Ohio, frigid Ohio, to live the life everyone believed she was living as Computer Science major Ohio State student Maggie Calcarol. The nineteen year old growled a bit below her breathe as she made her way through the crowd, bumping into people occasionally.

"Hello beautiful." A pair of brown eyes met her onyx orbs as the man greeting her, drunkenly place his arm around her waist. Maggie gagged. The man smelt as if he hadn't taken a shower in four days, his breath smelt of alcohol, and his teeth...eh...his teeth looked like they never met such a thing as Colgate.

"Excuse me..." Kindly but firmly she took his arm off of her waist, checking quickly to make sure he didn't take anything of hers while he had a grip on her. "I'm taken." Maggie lied gingerly through her teeth, purposely showing off her white teeth to the man who clearly needed the hint.

"But now sweet heart-" The greasy haired man pressed on, purring, pushing Maggie back now, towards one of the secluded corners of the club. "-All I want is a little-"

Maggie frowned, growling again as she pushed him away. "Listen you-"

"-now now-" He pressed extremely closer to her, pressing something to her back, freezing her in place.

_Too many people. Too many witnesses. They're all so damn close._

"-all I want is a little time to talk to you."

"Fine." She spat, trying to release herself from his grasp but he held on tighter.

"In the alley kitten."

_Perfect. An alley! Outside a...club. People walking by. No, no, I can't risk it._

"Don't call me kitten."

"But look at you. All dolled up for no on-"

"I'm sorry." Someone butted in, breaking the man's grip lock on her arm and causing him to pull back whatever he had pressed against Maggie's back. "I brought you your drink Hailey." The man's accent was thick, not Californian or Northern, no where close to Latin or Mexican. Maggie couldn't help but smile, stepping back away from the man and towards her savior, a smug faced, shaggy haired male who coincidentally was holding a drink out towards her.

"Thanks," She gave him a peck on the cheek, pulling in closer to him before looking down as if to be protected before turning to see the other man walk away. After a good bit of waiting, she smiled, turning to get a better look at the male next to her. He was taller than her, even in her high heels, a oval face dirty brown tousled locks paired with memorizing green eyes that stared back at her, giving her a funny feeling in her stomach. Maggie couldn't help but smile. Her phone began buzzing, signaling her time to go, back to her pumpkin, but she only pushed on her pocket. Why leave the ball and risk loosing a prince?

"Stupid girl. Look next time where you're going." Maggie's mouth dropped. Scratch that last part. She began to leave, pushing harder through the crowd to get towards the door. Cinderella hadn't found a prince but just another ass hole.

"Jack ass." Nothing stopped her from making her way to a few blocks down, and jumping back to her small town in Ohio. A mutter left her lips as she shook off the heels and wig, but stopped when she couldn't find her aviator glasses. A string of curses flew out her lips causing Maggie to consider jumping back to the club but was too tired to even make it to her dorm.

"Oh, Maggie...there's a whole world out there filled with guys..." The red head yawned, jumping herself to her dorm bed room, quietly making sure not to wake up her dorm room mate. Not like it ever mattered since she was always hammered from partying to even notice Maggie jump into the bathroom or even onto her bed. "-you don't need to associate yourself with losers like him."

Another yawn and Maggie was already crawled into bed. "Tomorrow Maggie tomorrow is another day."


	2. Jump Scars

Along the quiet East side of the once divided city, along a quite nice corner apartment on the fifth floor with a view out looking a palace Maggie could not name, Maggie undraped herself of her book bag, her shoes, her jacket and the rest of her items before reaching the kitchen, popping open a can of bionade, then returning to the confines of the plush living room.  
A light is gray setting blanketed itself over the interior, casting an modern look on the room like one would be featured in a catalogue. Maggie pushed a fluffed up black pillow under her head as she wrapped the matching quilt to cover herself with.  
Snow drifted across the open patio doors, cooling the warmth that weakly lingered in the loft. Silence. Maggie held her breath, exhaling slowly as she thought of Austria. Everyone was in the ski lodges by now, enjoying family time together and the fresh powder falling as she thought. White capped mountains and snow covered trees, the few skiiers heading atop of Stienplatterz and the resort snuggled within a nestle of pines. A cold breeze hit her cheek, a nip of frost kissing her nose making her wrap the blankets closer to her. An image of the mountain appeared in her mind and the sudden impact her skin had against the icy powder made her scream.  
Maggie was practically naked surrounded by the darkness of midnight on a mountain top. The popping in her ears gave her a headache, the aching in her muscles sent a shiver thru her body; before her body's temperate dropped to critical the jumper jumped herself back into her apartment, crashing into the living room, the jump impact creating a large crater like break into floor. The polished wood against her flesh caused her to grasp, before she regained self control and jumped herself into the bathroom.  
Blankets scattered across the tile, Maggie gripped to the bath, soaked head to toe as steam filled the room.  
"You gotta stop doing that Mags," she muttered to herself. "You gotta stop doing that."

------

He walked across the street, the empty street along a quiet neighborhood in Ohio, noting the Victorian styled houses that lined the block before ending at a old post light then continuing to the left and the right. Snow crunched underneath his boots, catching in his hair as he walked a bit further before stopping, picking up a pair of glasses laying on the street.  
"She's been here." He mumbled, shoving the shades into his jacket pocket and continuing down the same path again. Snow silently drifted to the North, it was predicted to stop, but he knew better. God was never predictable. God had other all of them.

------

She was warned not to jump.  
But despite the "low cover" she promised to keep and the angry animosity Maggie held for the boy who stole her aviatars, Maggie couldn't help but play risk. Jumping back and forth from the club in LA to the University, down Rodeo Drive and Hancock Park; the determination to find her messy haired jerk seemed...almost childish.  
And so once again, Maggie, dressed in her favorite black ruffle dress, Nirvana cut-off tank (underneath) and Giuliana Platforms, stepped down into the lounge of the rock dance hall before pushing on her blue-gray faded aviatars. (Her second favorite pair) A dark, haunting bass began to strum in the background, flashing orbs of white and red lit the different features of the crowd and the lead singer of the local band began his song. A low, deep voice boomed in the speakers, haunting, casting his spell over his captive audience.

If you love me,  
Why don't you say it's true If you need me,  
Why do you run away Let the feeling the inside emerged and break Let the remorse fill your veins!

Bodies swayed to the singer's melody. So dark and memorizing, it distracted Maggie from her original reason of spending almost every night at the club. The lights began to dim, lighting the stage with a gray and red tint; the band's only light changing to the tone of the song.

You said I was your only one but you lied just like I knew you would

A hum roared through the floor, the crowd now breaking into a dance (half of which consisted of jumping up and down as the melody deepened.) A quick break to the bar and Maggie slipped her fake I.D to the bar tender. "Hailey Prescott?" He eyed her as she removed the shades and placed them on her hazel wig, twirling a strand of a bleached blonde streak within her finger. She popped her gum, chewed with an annoyed glance, winked at the bar tender then smiled. "Yeah?"  
"Birthday?"  
"November 7th, 1986. Is there a problem?" She flashed her white teeth once more, before returning to her chewing.  
"What would you like to drink?"  
"Draught Guinness." He gave her a questioned look before serving her her drink and attending to the next customer. She twirled back to scan the club. The dancing grew and the bass dwell on two strums and a low pitch while the lead singer began to bang his head frrom side to side, his voice growing back to a low haunt.

I know its not the same but how can you just let it slip away!

Maggie's frown puffed her lips, he hadn't shown up .yet. She was sure he would. There was so much she'd wanted to ask him, so much she'd wanted to know. And she wasn't going to take no for an answer.

So let right now change your mind Just let me know how you feel tonight

"Vodka with mint." She slid a ten to the bartender as she took the last swig of her Draught then a few chips. A trick she'd learned from Cancun, drinking on an empty stomach meant serious throwing up and major hang over in the morning. A flicker in the back of the club caught Maggie's onyx orb's attention. A body (the same body) acquipped with tousled brown locks and green eyes walked down over to the bar and ordered a atomic wash. A drunk. Maggie rolled her eyes. He looked the same as he did the other night. A leather torn jacket, dark faded jeans, and a black t seemed like the only thing he owned (One of the many asumptions Maggie had made on the boy since their last (and only) encounter. ) and the annoyed look he gave every girl who came up to him had him seem quite...grouchy. (funny how she dubbed him that when she didn't even know him)  
"You got somethin' to say?" His accent was thick, almost (not slurred but) unconprehindable.  
" 'Cuse me?"  
"You've been here for five days already. And all ya do is look at me-"  
"Oh...what? Oh! Sorry 'bout that."  
"Well?"  
"Hmmm?"  
"Hi. " The pair looked to see the lead singer casually wrap his arm around Maggie's waist bearing a confident smirk as he tossed his bangs to the side. ''I couldn't help but notice you from-"  
"Sorry. Not interested."  
"Ouch." The singer turned away, the smug look wiped away from his face and once again the two were left as they were. "You're quite cold ya know?" His british accent made Maggie smile.  
"Listen about the other night-"  
"No need to thank me princess-"  
"You stole my aviator shades and I want them back."  
"Your aviators? What makes you bloody think I got them?" He sigh taking a swig of his drink, "I don't have 'em. Listen-" He leant in closer to her, placing his hand on her waist. A hot blush betrayed her cool demeanor and she couldn't help but stare into his lush green eyes. "-stop jumping. You're gonna attract attention to ya self. And I ain't no babysitter." The blush she had was gone as quick as it came and the anger she'd felt much like from the first night (the bubbling anger any woman feels when they've just been rejected) emerged.  
"Make me." She broke free of his grasp; took a few steps back then jumped.  
She landed in Vegas, the same way she'd landed in her apartment a couple of days ago, attracting some attention but as she slipped off her wig, removing some of her theatrical disguise, she heard a crash behind her.  
"Are you hard of hearin'?" he's recovery was fast, strangely faster than what to it took it to recover that when she'd not noticed that he was standing right next to her, her heart missed a beat. "You're a red head?"  
"Don't touch me." She looked away, reinventing the space he closed between them, tossing the wig into the trash. He stopped her, this time taking a hold of her wrist and pushing her against the wall.  
"Stop jumping."  
"What's it to you if I don't?" A frustrated look furrowed in between his brows as he gripped her wrist tighter then let go, jumping somewhere Maggie didn't bother following.  
"Ugh!" She stomped away too, pushing the elevator button more times than necessary; tonight would be one hell of a long night.

----

She had the worst hangover ever. That draught guiness, bloody mary and few other drinks she scored from partying in the ghost bar in Vegas had left her with the worst rememberance of last night including four numbers written on her arm. Pushing back her messy locks she jumped back to her apartment in Berlin; shutting the curtains to block out the sun which burned her eyes. She kicked off her pumps, stripped herself of her dress, leaving her only in her Nirvana tank top and boy shorts as she sluggishly dragged herself into her room. With a grumble Maggie plopped onto the bed before twirling in a sleepish state to get the covers.  
"I'm not sure if I should like this look more than that little dress you wore." He was on the bed next to her, arms crossed behind his head as he turned to her to grin only to see her shove the pillow over her head.  
"Ugh.I fucking hate hang overs."  
"This isn't a illusion-"  
"Go away-"  
"And whose to say they'll go away?" A shatter of dishes broke in the kitchen as the male grinned; a whizzing shot of electricity shot past the red head's ear, one of the prongs from the item shot at her cutting her cheek.  
"What the fucking hell!" Maggie shot up and dashed out of the room and into the bath room, barely slamming the door in time for the second attack to lodge itself in the wood.  
"I told you to stop jumpin'." The tousled haired male jumped into the rest room to find Maggie searching through her laundry for a pair of shorts. "You just didn't listen."  
"How in the hell did they-"  
"Your jump scar. It's small and fades faster than older jumpers but its powerful." Maggie stared at the stranger in amazement.  
"Who are you?" The door broke in and two men burst in only in time for the two have jumped else where leaving only a jump scar.

-------

They landed in London first. Then New Dehli. Then Moscow. Las Vegas. Lima. Rio. San Antonio. Then stopped in Mexico City. They fell to the ground with a thud before Maggie gripped the side of her head, still unable to recognize jumping with her ears popping and dizziness. The cold dirty cement crunched under her weight, groups of cart sellers and beggars stared in amazement, uttering phrases in Spanish.  
"Lets go."  
"Wait!" He stopped, looking back at her.  
"What's your name?"  
"Griffin, now lets go." Their pursuit began on foot, running through alley ways and markets, galleries and plazas; then when they were a safe distance away from their last jump spot they jumped again landing in the Pacific Ocean before swimming ten yards to jump again.  
They stopped in back into Columbus only to catch a cab in the thirty degree morning temperature. Maggie was shocked, allowing herself small glances out the window as she wrapped her arms around herself,shivering before they got out at an IHOP. Silently they ordered some food, Griffin ordering more than his share.  
"Who are they?" Twenty minutes of silence. Maggie stared at Griffin with a new fire in her eyes, stabbing his pancakes with her fork. He eyed her, dropped his fork, then sighed.  
"No." And then he jumped. 


	3. Attack

There was a rapid knocking at the door, sounding like the frantic knocking of a boyfriend who got locked out of their girlfriend's place, and as much as it bothered her to open the door, taking her concentration away from Bill and True Blood; Natalie dragged herself off of the bed and opened the door.

"Hell-"

"Is your roommate Maggie Calcarol?" Two men barged into the small dorm, knocking the confused girl into the hall way, began their search through the side of the room that was decorated with photos of Maggie, tossing things on to the floor before, with what seemed like no effort, flipped the mattress over.

"Yea-hey! Don't you need to show a search warrant or something!?" Clearly Natalie had spent too much time watching CIS.

The man, a tall blonde, who did most of the talking, next to the other to males in the room who were currently searching for something, flashed something at her before facing her directly. "This isn't any of your concern now...I'd like to ask you a few questions about her."

-----

Griffin landed in Cuba, crashing into a farmer and his steer before grumbling, raking his hand through his tousled locks before walking away; the farmer following after him, yelling and waving his fists in the air angrily. Another crash behind him caused him to stop. "Wait!" Maggie stumbled behind him, tripping on a stone which caused her to skid to her knees. The farmer stopped; seeing the girl appear out of nowhere freaked him out causing him to run back past his steer and farther off the road.

"Ugh!" Griffin jumped again this time crashing into a few trees in the black forest, another crash behind him; Maggie stumbling forth, this time crashing into Griffin, gripping onto his jacket.

"Let off well ya!"

"Wait just a second!" Pissed and cold from only having shorts, a tank and no shoes, she shivered disillusioning the facade of her determined demeanor. "Answer my damn question!" Hands shoved into her pockets, she pouted her lip, stopping in front of him.

"What do you bloody want from me!" He paced in front of her, questioning himself for even staying.

"Answers! I want answers! I don't know what the bloody hell is going on! Who were those people! Why are they attack me!...How am I following you?" He rolled his eyes, repeating the manner of running his hand through his hair, grumbling as he sized her up. She wasn't much of a fighter, although she was tall, she was petite, and obviously not the brightest crayon in the box.

"You went through my jump scar, now stop following me." He pushed her back into a tree, watching her intensely as he gripped onto her shoulders; his eyes flickered with anger, mirroring her fear as she forced a gulp back. What was she afraid of. Griffin was of normal stature for a guy his age, he was fairly built, knew a good thing or two, pretty much relatable to the 'average Joe.' The girl only had to worry about her ignorance. That stupid problem she had with not listening was what was getting her in trouble. She should know. Every jumper should know that the more you jump the more attention you'd draw to yourself. It was common practice. What was she scared of. Griffin felt a pressure on his shoulders as her fragile hands gripped onto him, pushing him back with strength she held well; he had to admit when she wanted to be she was pretty strong.

"Please tell me." Maggie's voice wavered, trembling as she fought back tears which she wiped at furiously. She was weak though...despite her physical physique.

"Oh...bloody hell...don't start." The boy paced, avoiding her tears, looking left and right, angry he should've jumped when he had the chance, leaving her alone back in Los Angeles would've been the smart thing to do.

"Those people broke into my apartment! They followed me to God knows where! They attacked me in my home! You followed me too! Why are you following! I'm a bit freaked out right now!"

"Well bloody...don't go acting like you're some innocent victim! The way you jump, you reckless twit, no wonder they can follow you! You're so slow!"

"I'm not slow!"

"Ugh! Shut up will ya? You _are _slow, and so damn annoying!" Maggie growled at his statement, smacking his head into the trunk of the ever green. Pine needles fell in his shirt ,covered his hair and scratched his face. "Why are you so difficult! Listen...those people are called Paladins-,"

"What?"

"Are you gonna let me explain or are you gonna interrupt me again?! Paladins: religious fanatics, kill jumpers, people like us!"

"Why?"

"Ugh god am I going to have to spell it out for you? Because we can do what ever the hell we want! That's why! That's why they attacked you! That's why they broke into your place!"

"Well how nice of you. _Because we can do what ever the hell we want! _Yes. I totally knew that was the exact reason why strange men carrying guns broke in to my apartment and tried to kill me! That makes so much damn perfect sense!"

" And that's not the end of it! Them breaking into your apartment is only the start!"

"What do you mean only the start!"

"They'll keep looking for you and they'll start with your family, your ,friends, I assume if you have any. Now...get lost...and if I were you-" He leant in closer, just like he did at the club, but this time, Maggie felt the cool rush off the snow between her toes, her hands shivered from the lack of clothes and the water still dripping from her hair, yet no blush emerged. "-I'd hide. Don't tell anyone, not your family, not your friends, just disappear. They'll go after you, your family, friends, anyone you hold close to you. They won't stop until you're dead." And just like that he left.

* * *

"Maggie what the hell is going on with you! I want the truth damn it! Two guys just barged into our room and demanded to know all this stuff about you! They tore up the room! They even smashed my TV! My damn television Magnolia! I was watching True Blood!" Maggie bit her lip; the fact that those people had gone to the apartment in Berlin had made her feel reckless but that they went to her dorm crept her out. It was like what Griffin said, if they couldn't find her, they'd go after everything else that mattered to her.

"Listen...Natalie did you tell them anything?" Anything could give her away now, not like she'd talked much to her roommate in the first place, but her brothers had visited and she knew her mother well enough that anything she said could send them after her family. First thing's first though, they must've wanted to know something important. What did she know that was important? What had she done to deserve this attention?

"They kept asking about your behavior, family, listen Maggie they took a bunch of your stuff."

"My stuff? Why would they do that? Wait. WHY IN THE HELL DID YOU LET THEM TAKE ME STUFF! Did they say why they went like a tornado through the room? Hey wait...what did you tell them about my family?"

"Nothin-" the phone hung up, flashing a low battery sign as Maggie grumbled, cursing under her breath as she paced back and forth along the Rein. The morning and night before had been disastrous: her whole world seemed to be turning upside down (but then again maybe she may have been a bit overdramatic.) A boy she'd only met. People attacking her in her apartment, chasing her around the world, taking her stuff...

She continued to pace, feeling uneasy as she walked back and forth before jumping to some city, taking a turn at some street and making her way to some unknown location. Cars shot by, the cold February morning biting at her bare legs causing her to shiver before she took another turn into a alley before she jumped again, this time, her bare feet landing on hot, black rocks. The heat from the Hawaiian beach made Maggie feel better as she made her way up towards the road before jumping again.

Hours had gone by before Maggie even realized what time it was. After taking a quick stop at her hometown to grab a few things from her old room (before her parents even knew she'd gone home) she'd jumped back to the University to see what was left of her things. Pictures had been taken, her dresser pulled out of its cabinets, Natalie had already gone to class, probably after telling all of her friends she'd dormed with a criminal of some sort or just plain went down to the Commons to watch True Blood; leaving the jumper to herself to recollect on what was going on. Items of her were missing (yet her iPod was still in its spot, hidden by Natalie's clothing on the floor) and with her small messenger bag slung over her shoulder she'd shoved what she could in there.

"Magnolia I presume?" She screamed, shoving back into the torn apart dresser as a man stood at the door, arms crossed over his chest. Despite her anxiety on high, she could make out the features on the tall sandy blonde. Muscular, hair cut short, short features and a southern accent; he'd reminded her of a boy she had dated back in high school. What was his name…Drake. Yeah. Drake. Wait. Why in the hell was she thinking of that. The stream of conscious was working on her nerves which burned to run. Run. Run. Run stupid run! He raised his hands up defensively, smiling as he stepped in to the dorm.

"W-who are you!" Why didn't she make a break for the door. Why didn't she scream.

"The name's Caleb."

"Ok Caleb, get out." Maggie searched for something to use in her defense as Caleb reached into his pocket pulling out a tazor. Magnolia's eyes spotted the weapon instantly and cursed uncontrollably. Who uses a tazor anymore. Why a tazor! God. Her hands searched for something to use but came empty every time.

"I'm afraid, unless you come with me...I can't do that." When had he moved. When did he shove that tazor into her side. A sharp pain lunged in her side, causing her to crumble to the floor; images of Venice, Moscow, Berlin, Vegas, and other previous spots Maggie jumped to blurred in her head, a cry of pain pulsating through her muscles. "You've been quite foolish coming back here even after your friend called."

She stifled another cry of pain as she gripped onto the small lamp table, trying to catch herself. A tight fist gripped at her hair, pulling her back to expose her neck, "There's no point in fighting." Adrenaline. She'd prayed to god that her adrenaline was kicking in soon. The neck. He was planning on hitting her neck with the tazor. Her neck! Why wasn't the adrenaline kicking in!

She shut her eye, grinding her teeth together as she shoved herself back from the lamp table, shoving back into the male behind her. Caleb tumbled back, attempting to hold onto her hair, but Maggie ripped away. Her legs wobbled beneath her as she shot down the hall, tears streaming down her cheeks as she slammed her weight into the stair well, gripping the railing before the male slammed into her, sending them down the stairs.

A vision of New Delhi imprinted itself in Maggie's mind but the shock from the low voltages still running through her system blocked her from jumping unfortunately away from her attacker as well jumping to the Indian city, leaving them sprawled on the landing, a few of the tenants from the floor below them coming to check out the commotion. The girl began to cry, biting her lip as she managed to limped down the stairs before collapsing on the floor.

"You can't run Maggie." Her attacker laughed, holding his sides as he followed down the hall after her. "You can't even jump!"

Panic filled Maggie, adrenaline pumping through her veins as she felt the tingling electricity escaping her, a moment to jump, a moment to escape her attacker. The room shook, the wall crumbled around her, and for a spilt second she felt her ears pop as the cool, moist grass forming underneath the thick trunks of lush canopies came into view. She fell with a thud, the rumble from her jump shocking some of the still formed snow from its spot as she rolled down the mountainside with little enjoyment before hitting a tree trunk.

"You put up quite a fight for a girl your size." Instantly she was pinned to the ground, struggling to breathe under her attacker's weight as he hand-cuffed himself to her, grinning as he hovered over her with a sick smile on his face.

"What do you want with me!" Kicking, screaming, trashing and crying, trying to break free from his hold over her on the ground. Cringing as he ran a hand over her reddened cheek.

"You know...we don't normally come across female jumpers, matter-of-fact, its a rarity to even hear of one, so it surprised me when I heard that we'd located the paladin killing jumper with a female," Caleb laughed, brushing her bangs out of her face, watching her squirm underneath him. "Now, Now, look at me...now I don't want to kill you, not now at least, but for what we know, Griffin is our top priority. And since I'm in a intrigued mood, I'll cut you a deal."

Maggie jumped, sending both of them into the salty Indian ocean, where Maggie struggled to keep herself afloat with her attacker's weight dragging her down. A burning itch filled her throat, begging desperately for air, begging for her to jump.

They crashed this time among the staircase hills of Santorini, tumbling down before she jumped again this time, landing on a sunny beach in the Maldives. She gasped as she gripped onto his shirt, biting into his shoulder not knowing what else to do. Her wrist hurt, shoulders burned, her back was on fire and her lungs left like she had been stung by a hundred bees.

"Release me!"The jumper panted, pulling at the hand cuff around her wrist.

"You're the one gripping onto me!" He laughed, pushing back Maggie's soaked bangs from her face.

"Ugh!"

"You're feisty one. I like that. But as I was saying I'll cut you a deal, bring us Griffin and I won't kill you." And with that he smashed the back of the tazor into her neck, knocking her out unconscious.


	4. Persuasion

"Now Maggie," He flashed a bright row of teeth at the girl, tightening the wires around her wrists as he shoved the tazor into her side; a scream escaping her gritted teeth. Although it wasn't the EGC (was that what Griffin had called it?) that the paladins used back at her apartment, it left her in pain and dizzy, causing her head to spin. " We've been hunting down the paladin killer for a long time now and we won't stop at nothing till we get him. Now, you're fairly new to our...system, and as I've said before, you're a rarity. I'd like to see you stay alive so I can't have you being killed...also-" He punched her cheek, shook off the impact his fist had with her face before he'd wiped the blood away from her lips. "-don't get any ideas, I don't want you thinking that I'm going soft on you. I will kill you if you believe you can try and run away from me or our system. No jumper has ever been able to avoid us for long. Not even Griffin." The paladin cracked a laugh, tossing Maggie to the side as the cords wrapped tightly around her feet sparked; Maggie growling at the numbing electric surge. He shoved the tazor into her side once more, before releasing her from the wire cuffs. "I'll be in touch."

"Wait!" Spitting out blood, shaking, Maggie wobbled furiously, trembling as she spoke, "Why...kill..."

"Griffin? Because, paladin killer or not, only God deserves the power to be anywhere when he pleases...not the likes of just anyone."

"But kill him? For being able to jump!? That's horse shit! I can jump and you're here telling me you don't want me to die but you want someone who shares the same powers as me too!?"

"Yes Maggie, kill him. And your life is a different subject for another encounter. Whether you find it to be horse shit or not, it must happen." He walked back, cupping her chin as he lifted her to his eye view. "If we don't kill him...well...we'll kill you." He kissed her cheek, causing the jumper to shrink back, before turning her towards him. "I like the rarity in priceless things Maggie, don't get killed."

-----

She walked away full of scratches, bruised and bleeding; walked away knowing she'd live another day only because some psychotic fanatic liked her, walked away with some paranoia on her mind, walked away with only one thought.

She'd be the death of Griffin.

She'd taken the first chance to get away by planning the demise of someone else (even if that someone else was a royal pain in the ass that was as big as Russia), gotten herself tangled in a horrible fight between the people who threatened to kill her (aka the douche bag psychotic religious freaks) and the boy (still a giant Russian sized pain in her ass) who saved her, all because she panicked. Panicked. What was she suppose to have done?!

She pulled out her nano from her back pocket, a angry growl emerging as she held the cracked iPod in her hands.

"Oh my fucking...you can't be serious?!"

Maggie tossed the iPod into the waves before she began to paced back and forth from the shore line of Lido. A wave of fresh salt water crashed along the sea shelled sand, drifting the aroma of sea salt into her lungs; the Italian night sky was so peaceful and relaxing, the soothing lapses of the water dancing with the laughter of late night tourist.

Maggie tugged the shawl she'd bought earlier from a small boutique around her shoulders, walking back onto the cobble stones that lead the way back into the main part of the island. The water taxis were closed for the remainder of the night leaving drunken tourist amidst the peaceful island, giggling and wandering about, preoccupying corners of alley ways and rushing back and forth some of the small cantinas that produced a beat.

"Un gelato fresca por favor." Her Italian gave her away, her light sun kissed hair and fair skin made her noticeable, and her eyes, a rarity amongst her genes since everyone in her family had sparkling blue and greens orbs while Maggie's were a brilliant onyx, attracted a curiosity that some were compelled to inquire more about. She'd paid the man with her card, too restless too care and too impatient too count whatever cash she had left; plus whenever she felt around in her pocket to check if something was there she'd remember she'd spent most of it on Griffin's breakfast.

Griffin…

"Pardonà m-"

"Excusez-moi. Je ne parle pas italienne."

"Parlez-vouz anglais?"

"Non." She'd broken away faster than she'd gotten the attention, pushing past a group of men before tossing the gelato she'd once craved for into a bin, storming off back onto the cobble stone.

The girl was angrier with herself more than she'd cared to be. Sure his tousled locks and cocky smile had saved her once and sure he'd helped her (sort of) when those people broke into her apartment but that was it.

Technically he'd done nothing heroic enough to the point of repaying him. He'd never been nice to her, nor had he'd ever helped her by telling her what hell was going on and oh sure, if he'd been wanted by these people for so long he'd manage on his own. Plus! She didn't even know how to find him!

A smirk lit up her face, if she couldn't find him he'd be fine, thus she'd done him a favor...in a way...but then again if she didn't find him she'd be dead...which didn't really look favorable to Maggie at all.

Get him by any means necessary she was told. Any means necessary. Maggie bit her lip. What a long night this'll be.

-----

She'd ran a hand through her tousled locks, pulling back her hair out of her face, wishing she had a rubber band, running through the crowed slums of Kolkata as she created more and more jump scars only through certain areas of the city.

It took her a bit longer than she wished to admit to come up with the assumptions but from what she'd recollected from Griffin and Caleb the more she'd jump, the more paladins she'd attract, the more paladins there were in a closed area, the more likely Griffin would show up. So far with an amount of twelve jumps five paladins have shown up...but no Griffin. Maggie crashed through a rigid shack; three kids rushing out of the rubbish. Their faces amazed and shocked as two of the trench wearing men followed suit, pushing one of the kids out of their way as they ran through the shack.

A couple yards ahead of them, she'd thanked all of those years of high school track and field she'd been forced into. Who would've thought that one day she'd be running from people who wanted her dead and she'd be able to out run them. (sarcasm) She swung to the left, jumping on to a roof before jumping on to the oil pipe and slipping off the other side.

A roar of yells erupted from a small flock of women washing clothes in a small dug as the paladins trampled through their work. One woman gripped onto the nearest paladin and began yelling only for him to turn around and hit her. Maggie tightened her fist as she stopped, turn around, jumped and rammed into the first paladin she saw.

A rage fluttered from her as she jumped him to Siberia, the next some where off the Great Barrier reefs, another somewhere in Antarctica, the other two off in the Atlantic. She didn't care what happened to them, her anger and frustration boiling before she walked back past the women and to the shack, dropping off three hundreds with the children then jumping.

She destroyed two villages with in the morning, a forest the day before, and ruined her favorite pair of shorts by slugging through Paris's seawares. Cuts lined her arms, bruises show casing themselves on her legs, mud trekked up the back of her thigh and she was sure by morning she'd have some bug bites to go along with her fruitless efforts.

Maggie pictured her past couple of days' efforts, all wasted only to leave her feet hurting, knuckles cut and bleeding, her head pounding and phone ringing.

"You've disposed of nine of my men?" Caleb's roar made Maggie pull her phone back.

"How the hell did you get my phone number!"

"You better catch him Maggie."

"I know I know. Or else."

The phone cut off. And although Maggie didn't want to hurt Griffin she was afraid of the consequences. Caleb had already threatened her friends and family, beaten her when he proposed the deal and he told he didn't want to seem soft for letting her go; a thought of what he really was like when she'd betray him was worse.

Tired and painfully exhausted, the female jumper ached to sleep, ached to stop, but the nagging feeling tugging at her kept her moving. One more go Maggie, you'll find him.

It was almost midnight in Dublin and Maggie would soon make her way over to cause a little havoc and possibly attract Griffin with another bouquet of jump scars. She was wearing out but she had to keep going...for fear of Caleb's aggression.

A quick jump to her trashed Berlin apartment (some thanks to Caleb for making it a non touchable area for paladins) and she'd changed into some dark denims and a sliver sleeveless tunic, applying little make up only to cover some of the reddish bruising on her arms, neck and face. Disguises wouldn't help her anymore, since any notified paladin knew she'd possibly jump to their sector and she'd (not intentionally) made it obvious that she'd jumped there. The red head sighed as she examined her reflection in the mirror. The image was still pretty…a little bit more than decent to the eye and the shine from the tunic gave her a party girl appearance. What was she dressing up for anymore anyways? Now that she was under strict surveillance she'd constantly be on the run. Magnolia glanced down at her feet. On the run in kitten heeled gladiators.

Dublin was cold, expected from the time of the year and the heat from India cooled as Maggie made her way to a pub, laughing along to some drunk's joke as she sipped her beer before tossing a few beer nuts into her mouth. Three more hours went by with out success. Hopefully Griffin had followed her that one day Caleb attacked her and knew of her trap. She didn't want to, but her family was being threatened and she didn't know what else she could do.

"You've been busy lately." Her heart sped up as the British accent whispered behind her ear.

Run. She wanted him to run. To run or jump or whatever the hell and get out of there as quick as possible.

"When did you start fighting paladins?" His accent changed, no longer portraying a British accent but a southern one.

Run.

Now, knowing it wasn't Griffin, but instead Caleb, she felt like running. Running farther away from him as fast as she could. Clearly a foot taller than her, wearing all black and grinning from ear to ear as he gripped onto her arm, pushing her into a dark alley, Caleb threw the beer out of her hand. "Expecting someone else?"

"Dammit Caleb." A hiss escaped her lips as she struggled against his grasp, hoping someone would help.

"You're stalling Maggie, and testing my patience."

"You can't expect me to find some asshole I don't even know."

"You've been giving me excuse after excuse, I don't think I've made my point clear."

Maggie stopped, panicked, sickened not knowing what to think anymore.

Caleb pulled out a rod Maggie had seen much too often and dodged the attack. Sparks crackled in the brick wall behind her, forcing her to the side as she thanked herself for not wearing high heels and jumping to the Sahara. Caleb followed pursuit, landing on Maggie as she attempted to tackle him to the ground. If Griffin showed up he'd be exposed and then hopefully she'd be left alone. He'd loved to show up in the most unconventional times and this, right now, would be one of those times.

...But he didn't.

Maggie felt relieved and betrayed. He'd saved her from some loser in LA but he wouldn't help her fight off a psychotic fanatic!?

"I don't have anything you want!"

"Believe what you will." Caleb stood back, pulling out a knife as Maggie struggled to her feet, stumbling in the sand as she crawled back, a scared look plastered on her face. "You know what I want and you'd give it to me whether you'd like to or not." The knife came crashing down on her shoulder, ripping at her exposed flesh before a sick feeling over came her.

Her ears popped, head spinning, vision blurred as she felt a tight grip on her waist, the familiar scent of sweat and tropical forest, and the feel of hot leather against her skin; another jump and she felt the freezing powder of ice sting at her flesh, sizzling, burning her open wounds.

"Griffin!" She knew it was him, it had to be him, she just knew it had to be him. "Griffin!" The jump scar was closed by the time she was steady on her feet; Griffin gone with it. Maggie fell; her head buried in her knees as tears stung her eyes, small rocks infecting her wounds before she remembered about the knife lodged in her shoulder. Thankful that Caleb didn't hit anything vital, she bit her lip as she ripped the knife from her shoulder.

"Fuck." she stumbled up, trying to find her balance before the oh so familiar feel of the cracking ground behind her made her fall.

Fuck.


	5. Moving

Author's Note:

Ok this is a very short chapter. But I needed to update and this was in my head for a while. Tell me what you think.

I know Maggie is going through a lot but trust me, this is only the tip of the ice berg. There is more drama to come before anything can be resolved.

The floor shook and the glass in the mirror cracked as Magnolia came crashing into the marble counter top with full force. Her back smashed into the mirror and she bounced back from the collision onto the floor with a grunt. She looked like a wreck. A dead woman walking. Tears were dripping down her cheeks with the outline of mascara darkening the trail; scratches and cuts tracing her upper arms.

_Work fast Maggie._

Her hands were pulling open drawers and slamming others as she dug through the contents of the wash room before turning to rummage through the linen closet behind her. _Work faster Maggie, they're coming, they're coming __**now**_. There was no doubt in her mind that more of Caleb's stupid paladins were going to trample into her apartment any minute with the longer she stayed there. It wouldn't be a surprise if Caleb had her tracked with a satellite by now with the way he was constantly shadowing her. It was a good timing, the way Griffin showed up, saving her even though she was already hurt. Better be saved later rather than never. Maggie jerked her head up as she heard the door begin to whine with the force being applied to the other side. She could hear the kicks being forced on the door and grabbed as much as she could in a duffle bag, tossing every possible item she would need into it before flinching with the crack of the door.

She stumbled into a few locals as she worked her way through the streets of Austin, keeping her head low and ducking in and out of alleys. When she was some distance away from her jump scar she jumped again, this time landing in Seattle. She was moving too much, bleeding too much, losing blood, leaving her head spinning and the jumper light headed. Working her way into a Walgreens she went to the restroom and began tending to her wounds.

Her movements were quick, rapid, sloppy and paranoid. Any minute she expected to hear the door break off its hinges and the small room be filled with men with guns. That would be her luck. Tightening the wraps around her shoulder, Maggie held back the scream boiling in her throat, pulling on the bandage to keep the pressure on the gash before panting. Idiot. She should've known. She should've known that this would've happened. Caleb was certainly keen on hurting her no matter what the conclusion was. It was like he woke up in the morning thinking of excuses to hurt her. Yeah, that's exactly what he did. Caleb would just wake up every morning thinking "Oh, it's sunny, I'm going to stab Maggie for the hell of it!" If this type of thinking kept up then she would look like that Sally girl from that clay-mation movie, oh, what was the name of that movie. You know, the one about that pumpkin guy who wants Christmas or something.

Pouring the rubbing alcohol down her shoulder she gritted her teeth together before cleaning up as best as possible. She was no nurse, and she certainly didn't know how to make her wound look like something a doctor patched up but she managed to dress it to the best she could. Hopefully she wouldn't wear such restricting clothes next time so that she could properly run away from Caleb's fits.

The smell of whisky lingered in her hair and the need to wash the stench out drove the jumper to the edge. She didn't need reminders of how he attacked her in three different continents all in a matter of a few jumps. Heck! She just didn't need the drama right now! Taking one last, long look in the mirror the red head was very displeased. She looked like she got in a mud bath fight with some girl and lost. Bad. But of course she had gotten into a fight, unwillingly. And her opponent was a man, a very built, and angry, drunk man who had a knife, who knew her abilities, her weaknesses, everything that would scare her senseless. That was grounds for over looking. Right? Faintly, she applied a bit of foundation over her bruises and around her face. She didn't care about the ones on her arms or legs, no one would really pay as much attention to those as they would her facial flaws. The light freckles that were on her cheeks were buried as the female jumper tried to cover up the purpling blemish, trying to smile at her half ass efforts to look "normal." Normal? How could she look normal when she had just jumped herself from a battle scene to her apartment like nothing happened. Maggie threw on a university shirt, loose fitting and long enough to hid her upper arms just enough so no one saw the injuries, and a pair of rolled up boyfriend jeans with a pair of converse. It had been a while since she had dressed "down" compared to her every day style that she had to over look herself trice before jumping out of the bathroom.

First thing was first, she was headed back to her dorm room. Natalie should be there and she was sure that the floor manager would not be pleased with the damages done to the room. For the thousand of dollars she was paying to stay in the dorms a little slack would be appreciated. The musky halls of the dorm hall were quiet as always, except for when it was around four, that was usually the time when everyone would be headed back. Maggie glanced at her watch quickly noting the time was a bit before two so she had plenty of time to sort and clean the mess without hesitance. The door was closed surprisingly, so once opened no one saw the commotion within. Natalie's side was clean and proper, despite the tiny space in which the two lived while Maggie's stuff was everywhere. Quickly, she arranged the room to its best, missing a few items and photos but kept shoving things in the duffle bag with hesitance. She should buy new things, new clothes. Enough crime shows can give a person ideas, ideas such as being tracked by credit card usage, or possible bugs in her items, especially her room. With enough belongings in her bag she jumped to the Azores Islands to begin her trek.

Moving to different locations was key. If she stayed in one spot then she was screwed, but if she jumped too much then she was also out of luck. But walking a good distance from a jump scar to a new location was the safest way to travel. Heading down to the shore line the red head made another jump but then jumped back to her original location on the island. If the jump scars were inter-looping then maybe that would give her time. That was all she needed time. Time to figure out what to do, what to look for, what to plan for her safety in case of Caleb's return. After a good fifteen or so minute run she jumped to Greenland, then Alaska, down to Sydney then Singapore, catching a train that was headed north, to where she didn't care. As long as she got away.

Resting her head against the window, Maggie watched the scenery around her shoot by, her life was in an uproar.


End file.
